My Prayers and God’s Power

Jesus came to this earth to teach us how to live life on this side of heaven. If you want to be a leader, you must have the right attitude and a teachable spirit. Jesus was willing to teach those who were willing to not just hear the words that were coming out of His mouth but were eager to do what He was telling them to do. I believe that many people have heard God speak to them, but because of life circumstances and situations, they never follow through with what they were told to do. To know the right thing to do and not do it, is really a sin. A disciple of Christ will do what the teacher has told them and is telling them to do. Matthew 5:1-2 says, Jesus saw the crowds and went up a hill, where he sat down. His disciples gathered around him, and he began to teach them. (TEV) They were hungry for the word, and they were starving for encouragement and life change. My question to you is, are you hungry? Are you thirsty? If you are starving to change your position in life, or starving to find out why you were created in the first place, you must have, and demonstrate some discipline. Changing the direction of your life always begins with you disciplining yourself. It’s great to receive coaching and encouragement from others, but you must have the mind and heart to discipline yourself, to challenge yourself, and to hold yourself accountable. It’s not really that difficult for you to do. Why? Because we are naturally disciplined in those areas that are important to us! Think about it. You were disciplined, or you demonstrated some self-control in school, because you knew that your actions would have a direct effect on your grades. You are disciplined, or you follow a certain protocol at work, because you know that your attitude can affect the amount of money you can make. So you check your attitude, because you don’t want your attitude to affect your check. Yes, I’m making a general assumption about you; and I hope that I am right. I believe you picked up this book because you are tired of being you, and you want to be who God created you to be. We know how to be discipline in the ways of the world, but when it comes to being a Disciple of Christ, when it comes to being disciplined in the ways of the Lord, there is a sense of apathy. There are some who believe that receiving Christ as Lord and Savior is the end game. But it is just the beginning of a lifelong journey to becoming who God created you to be. Listen to me. One of the greatest mistakes that you will ever make in life is to stop learning. You can never have enough knowledge, and you can never know too much about Jesus. The more you learn about Christ, and your position in Him, the more He will reveal Himself to you. But you must give Him the freedom to speak into your life, to encourage and correct you. You cannot be a disciple of Christ without accepting His loving discipline. Proverbs 12:1 says, “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid.” First, let me say that I’m not calling you stupid. I’m just giving you the biblical words that were written by God Himself. The fact that you are reading this book, tells me that you are not stupid or sophomoric. Oh, we all make some stupid mistakes in life, but when we are in Christ, we are as wise as we want to be. Wisdom comes from God; and being wise is better than being smart! Never forget that. There’s a lot of smart people who make unwise decision all the time. Again, being wise is better than being smart.